Chavez Ravine was a shantytown neighborhood inhabited by Mexican Americans when the city of Los Angeles identified the site for development. Using eminent domain powers, the city expropriated the inhabitants in order to use the land for "public purposes". In fact, most of the land was turned over to Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley to build a ballpark, while O'Malley gave the city Wrigley Field in return, which was demolished and whose land could be put to use by the city.